How Much Does God Intervene In the Lives of Men?

12Oct

Now that’s a weighty question, isn’t it?

There are many who believe that God creates us and then stands back and lets life happen. I don’t currently count myself among those. I may later in life but I fear that might be because new wounds have been inflicted and I really don’t want to go there . . . But today, today, I think the Bible supports the conclusion that God is very active in the lives of His creation.

Hagar, a pagan (not to be mean-spirited here, just a factual description) declared God to be, the God who sees me, after her desert encounter with what many believe to be the pre-incarnate Christ in the wilderness when she fled from Sarah. In fact, Hagar had two separate encounters with God and He intervened in her life twice but also in Ishmael’s future promising in Genesis 17:20 that he would have a great number of descendants of which would come 12 princes. Take a look at Hagar’s first meeting with the Lord – I love the meaning of Ishmael- that was a new discovery for me!

Genesis 16:7-14

7 Now the angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur.8 He said, “Hagar, Sarai’s maid, where have you come from and where are you going?” And she said, “I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai.”9 Then the angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit yourself to her authority.”10 Moreover, the angel of the Lord said to her, “I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they will be too many to count.”11 The angel of the Lord said to her further,

“Behold, you are with child,And you will bear a son;And you shall call his name Ishmael [I.e. God hears]Because the Lord has given heed to your affliction.12 “He will be a wild donkey of a man,His hand will be against everyone,And everyone’s hand will be against him;And he will live to the east of [Lit before the face of; or in defiance of] all his brothers.”

13 Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are a God who sees” [Or You, God, see me] for she said, “Have I even remained alive here after seeing Him?”14 Therefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi [I.e. the well of the living one who sees me]; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered.

Additional examples of God’s intervention into the lives of men include:

A poor shepherd boy, David, who was elevated to warrior, hero and eventually king.

Let’s not forget Joseph, who, by most accounts was a spoiled brat before he was elevated to Pharaoh’s right hand man.

And for goodness sakes, the poor prophets. God intervened repeatedly in their lives in order to fulfill His purposes.

It should be noted God’s plans for Ishmael, David, Joseph and the prophets didn’t rescue them from difficult circumstances. In fact, His intervention resulted in a host of problems in every instance. Ishmael and his descendants fought with everyone and everyone with him. David may have been anointed King, but his path to the throne included being hunted by King Saul who sought to kill him. David was forced to run for his life! Joseph, prior to stepping into his pre-ordained role to save the people from starvation, was cast into a pit, sold into slavery, escaped a lecherous queen only to be falsely accused and thrown in prison, all before he was elevated to Pharaoh’s right hand man. And the prophets were sent hither and yon to issue verbal slap downs to kings and communities, and for their trouble they were hated and killed.

Need a New Testament example?

God intervened in the life of a young Jewish girl making her the mother of His son, Jesus Christ.

Paul a zealous pursuer of Christians was met on the road to Damascus, made blind, later had his sight restored, and then became an evangelist.

Jesus intervened and changed a bunch of fishermen into church leaders.

And all suffered for their service. Every single one. Mary watched as her son was hung on a cross. Paul was beaten, chased out of town, imprisoned, and shipwreck in service to the Lord.

And those fishermen who established the Christian church were martyred often dying horrifying deaths.

I can’t tell you exactly how often God intervenes in the lives of common men, but I do think the Bible clearly shows that he doesn’t simply create humans and cut them loose to fend for themselves in this world. He also doesn’t hide the fact that following Him doesn’t ensure easy passage through this life either. Keep in mind that, like those named in the faith hall of fame found in the book of Hebrews, many will die without seeing the fulfillment of God’s promises.

I’m pretty sure that since the Bible says that God is the same yesterday, today and always, that He continues to intercede in the lives of men today. We should take that to heart as the presidential election bears down upon us. We should keep that in mind as we see more and more signs of the end of the age revealed. God is God. Always has been. Always will be. His word will not return void.

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4 responses to “How Much Does God Intervene In the Lives of Men?”

Nancy

October 13, 2016 at 6:38 am

Excellent points. Thanks for the education. Thanks for pulling all of this together resulting in better understanding, better acceptance (at least for a few moments), and for peace (for a few seconds).

I’ve found this pilgrim path often requires a second by second, minute by minute, etc., holding on. And I know this particular post is painful too as it forces us to consider that there are times when God does not intervene and that just hurts in a multitude of circumstances. So on many levels, I realize this is not a comforting article. It might be nice to ponder the many times we may be completely unaware that God has intervened in our lives. We will never know for sure, but you may be aware of some near-miss accidents or times when a financial need was unexpectedly met. I try to offset my disappointments with those thoughts. Maybe that idea will be good for another minute or second of comfort. I hope so!

Thank you, Janet. Yes, some times reflecting on God’s blessings, known and unknown helps, and sometimes the grief, depression is so overwhelming that all I can do is hide. A lot of the time, being busy, too busy to think, helps to put things into perspective for me. You and Melanie are a blessing that have helped a lot.